Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Luka Modric has reportedly given West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic a glowing testimony of the Sunderland star.
West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic was persuaded to pursue Jermain Defoe by the striker’s former Tottenham Hotspur teammate, Luka Modric, according to the Telegraph.
It is claimed the Hammers have been forced to consider alternative targets after unsuccessful approaches for Chelsea’s Michy Batshuayi and Manchester United pair Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial.
And Bilic has reportedly settled on Sunderland’s Defoe after a glowing testimony from Modric, whom the Croatian managed at international level.
Luka Modric (left) in action for Tottenham Hotspur
According to the Telegraph, the now Real Madrid midfielder has told Bilic that Defoe is ‘one of the best out-and-out strikers he has played with and that his movement in and around the penalty area is first class’, making him the ‘perfect signing’ for West Ham.
And the Hammers have seemingly heeded Modric’s advice, with an improved bid reportedly set to be made after Sunderland turned down their initial £6 million offer.
Defoe, who has scored 11 Premier League goals this season, made his name at West Ham in the early 2000s, before controversially moving to Tottenham six months after the east Londoners’ relegation to the Championship.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe
The 34-year-old enjoyed two spells at White Hart Lane, the last of which saw him play alongside Modric for three-and-a-half campaigns.
Spurs sold the former Dinamo Zagreb man in the summer of 2012, with Defoe following suit in early 2014.
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